GIA Blog

Black August, born out of Black liberation, resistance, and justice movements, is a month dedicated to critical learning and analysis, reflection and study of our roles in oppressive or liberatory systems, and an opportunity to grow, connect, and prepare for the challenging work ahead.

I’m writing to share some thoughts on United Philanthropy Forum’s excellent 2020 Forum Virtual Conference, which brings together Philanthropy Serving Organizations (PSOs) to share examples of how we’re working to support, strengthen, and lead the grantmaking community.

In a blog entry from Bhumi B. Patel, a member of the Dancing Around Race cohort in the San Francisco Bay Area, she makes the case for intentional rest to refocus the work that needs to be done in this moment in which there's an "opportunity to change the trajectory of a system built and fostered by structures of white supremacy."

"What risks are we in philanthropy and impact investing willing to take to make lasting change? Are we willing to continue to sacrifice the lives, livelihoods, and well-being of entire communities for the comfort of our well-polished theories of change?"

A new Race to Lead report, Race to Lead Revisited: Obstacles and Opportunities in Addressing the Nonprofit Racial Leadership Gap, takes a look at the racial gap in nonprofit leadership.

Freedom Maps: Activating legacies of culture, art, and organizing in the U.S. South, a new report written by Maria Cherry Rangel, director of Strategic Initiatives at the Foundation for Louisiana, and Ron Ragin, independent cultural worker, examines the state of artistic practice in the South and "the ways in which artists and culture workers are helping to build progressive infrastructure through social justice, and practitioners’ visions for the future."

We all know by now how the coronavirus pandemic has affected the educational system. Inevitably, the pandemic has greatly impacted arts education in university-level art programs as some colleges continue to change or revisit their plans for in-person learning, remote classes, a hybrid model, as an article in The Los Angeles Times reports.

The International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD) recently announced a financial and organizational assessment of the IABD dance company membership. The research, The Black Report: What You Thought You Knew About Black Dance", analyzes a sample of 30 Black-led dance companies from across the United States, details the announcement.

The National Performance Network (NPN) reached out to artists in New Orleans and nationally with a provocative question: "What do you need?" The responses were captured in videos and to keep that conversation alive, NPN asks artists to answer that question via social media with the hashtag #WhatArtistsNeed.

Responding to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and systemic racism in the US, Bonfils-Stanton Foundation announced additional grantmaking actions both on COVID-19 and on combating racism, including three new anti-racism grants.